Worcester officials trying to bring school budget in line

Just when city and school officials finally agreed on the state-generated figure of the amount the city is underfunding its school system, the number is wiggling again.

In a twist that reflects the unpredictability of school funding, the state’s latest charter school tuition figures for Worcester show that the city budgeted about $565,000 more than will be needed, state education officials told a joint meeting of School Committee and City Council standing committees Wednesday morning. In essence, fewer Worcester children are attending charter schools than predicted. Now, the city will have to use the amount it set aside for that tuition for other educational purposes or else see the amount it is underfunding schools swell even more.

It was only this week that City Hall and the school administration building reached agreement on the quantity the city is underfunding its schools: Just shy of $800,000. That should have been an easy consensus, because the number is determined by a state formula, albeit a confusing one. Now, however, that number could reach $1.365 million if the $565,000 is not allocated toward other education costs.

The two parts of that figure are different things. The $800,000 is the remainder of underfunding from fiscal 2012, information that was not discovered until the books on that fiscal year were finalized this fall. (The shortfall had been even larger, but recent allocations from the City Council brought it down to about $800,000).

In other words, the amount of the shortfall was not known while the School Committee and City Council were finalizing their budgets.

The $565,000, on the other hand, exists in the budget, just in the wrong place. But now that the city has set the tax rate, it is more difficult to move that money around, according to City Auditor James A. DelSignore. In theory, the city might be able to use money from a contingency fund, he said.

The state sets a minimum level for school spending that is a combination of city and state funds. It is a different amount for each district, but it is uniform in listing included items (teacher salaries, books, charter school tuition) and not-included items (transportation, adult education, new buildings). While Worcester spends money on all of those things, it has not met the minimum that the state calls for in its formula this year.

There is debate statewide on whether the minimum, called the foundation budget, is actually enough for an adequate education, state Deputy Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education Jeff Wulfson told the joint meeting. In fact, statewide, most districts spend about 20 percent more than the minimum on their schools, he said. In urban districts, that amount is lower.

“Districts that really are spending right at foundation are trying to get by with the bare minimum,” Mr. Wulfson said.

While committee members from both sides talked about the need for financial planning, Chief Financial Officer Thomas F. Zidelis told them it would likely involve both spending reductions and finding new revenues. He also noted that the next city budget proposal that goes to councilors will include more details about the school budget.